नेत्रगर्तकसंसुप्तप्रसूनवनकीटकम् । मक्षिकापञ्जरप्रोतकोशकारक्रिमिव्रजम्
In the hollow of the eye, sleeping forest insects; a swarm of silk-producing worms, woven into the cage of flies.
प्राक्तनीम् उपभोगेहाम् इष्टानिष्टफलप्रदाम् । धाराधौतान्तया तन्वा हसच् छुष्कास्थिमालया
The former abode of enjoyment, which gave fruits both pleasant and unpleasant, now washed clean by streams, with a dry heap of bones laughing.
शिरोघटेन शुभ्रेण सम्पन्नेनेन्दुवर्चसा । विडम्बयच् च कर्पूरप्लुतलिङ्गशिरश्श्रियम्
With a pure skull, shining with the radiance of the moon, it mocked the glory of a Shiva-linga head anointed with camphor.
ऋज्वा संशुष्कसितया स्वास्थिमात्रावशेषया । ग्रीवयात्मानुसृतया दीर्घीकुर्वद् इवाकृतिम्
With a neck straight, dried and ashen, leaving only the barest remnant of flesh, following the line of the self, as if elongating the form.
मृणालिकापाण्डुरया धारावधुतमांसया । नासास्थिलतया वक्त्रं कृतसीमाक्रमं दधत्
With a neck pale as clay, the flesh washed away in a stream, the face marked only by the nasal bone, bearing the boundary of its former shape.
दीर्घकन्धरया नूनम् उत्तानीकृतवक्त्रया । प्रेक्षमाणम् इव प्राणान् उत्क्रान्तान् अम्बरोदरे
With a long neck, the face turned upward, as if watching the departing breaths vanish into the hollow of the sky.
जङ्घोरुजानुदोर्दण्डैर् द्विगुणं दीर्घतां गतैः । प्रमिमाणम् इवाशान्तं दीर्घाध्वश्रमभीतितः
With shins, knees, and arms doubled in length, as if measuring the endless expanse, worn out by the fatigue and fear of a long journey.
उदरेणातिनिम्नेन चर्मशेषेण शोषिणा । प्रदर्शयद् इवाज्ञस्य हृदयस्यातिशून्यताम्
With a deeply sunken belly, the remaining skin shriveled, as if displaying to the ignorant the utter emptiness of the heart.
प्रेक्ष्य तच् छुष्ककङ्कालम् आलानम् इव दन्तिनः । पूर्वापरपरामर्शम् अकुर्वन् भृगुर् उत्थितः
Seeing that dried skeleton, like an elephant's frame, Bhrigu rose, not recalling past or future contact.
आलोकसमकालं हि प्रतिभातं ततो भृगोः । चिरम् उत्क्रान्तजीवः किं मत्पुत्रो ऽयम् इति क्षणात्
At the very moment of seeing, it appeared to Bhrigu: 'Is this my son, whose life departed long ago?'—so he thought in an instant.
अचिन्तयत एवास्य भविष्यत्ताबलं ततः । कालं प्रति बभूवाशु कोपः परमदारुणः
He could only think of his son's lost youth, and immediately, an intense and terrible anger arose in him toward Time.
अकाल एव मत्पुत्रो नीतः किम् इति कोपितः । कालाय शापम् उत्स्रष्टुं भगवान् उपचक्रमे
The Lord began to utter a curse upon Time, angered that his son had been taken away prematurely.
अथाकलितरूपो ऽसौ कालः कवलितप्रजः । आधिभौतिकम् आस्थाय वपुर् मुनिम् उपाययौ
Then Time, whose form is subtle and who consumes all creatures, assuming a physical body, approached the sage.
खड्गपाशधरश् श्रीमान् कुण्डली कवचान्वितः । षड्भुजष् षण्मुखो बह्व्या वृतः किङ्करसेनया
He was splendid, bearing sword and noose, adorned with earrings and armor, six-armed and six-faced, surrounded by a great host of attendants.
यच्छरीरसमुत्थेन ज्वालाजालेन वल्गता । फुल्लकिंशुकवृक्षस्य बभाराद्रेश् श्रियं नभः
From his body arose a network of leaping flames, which bestowed upon the sky the glory of a blossoming kimshuka tree upon a mountain.
यत्करस्थत्रिशूलाग्रनिष्ठ्यूतैर् अग्निमण्डलैः । विरेजुर् उदितैर् आशाः कानकैर् इव कुण्डलैः
The circles of fire emanating from the tips of his trident, held in his hand, shone forth in all directions like golden earrings rising in the sky.
यत्पाशश्वसनायस्तशिखरा मेदिनीभृतः । दोलाम् इव समारूढाश् चेलुः पेतुश् च घूर्णिताः
The peaks of the earth, bound by the breath of his noose, swayed and spun as if mounted upon a swing.
यत्खड्गमण्डलोद्द्योतश्यामं बिम्बं विवस्वतः । कल्पदग्धजगद्धूमपर्याकुलम् इवाबभौ
The darkened orb of the sun, dimmed by the radiance of his sword, appeared as if enveloped by the smoke of a world consumed at the end of an age.
स उपेत्य महाबाहुः कुपितं तं महामुनिम् । कल्पक्षुब्धाब्धिगम्भीरं सान्त्वपूर्वम् उवाच ह
That mighty-armed one approached the great sage, who was angry and deep as an ocean agitated at the end of an age, and spoke to him first with words of conciliation.
विज्ञातलोकस्थितयो मुने दृष्टपरावराः । हेतुनापि न मुह्यन्ति किम् उ हेतुम् विनोत्तमाः
O sage, those who have understood the ways of the world and have seen both the higher and lower realities do not become deluded even by causes—how much less so, then, would the best among them without any cause!
त्वम् अनन्ततपा विप्रो वयं नियतिपालकाः । तेन सम्पूज्यसे पूज्य साधो नेतरयेच्छया
You are a brahmin of boundless austerity, while we are the guardians of destiny; for this reason, O worthy one, you are to be honored—such honor is not due to mere personal preference.
मा तपः क्षपय क्षुब्धैः कल्पकालमहानलैः । यो न दग्धो ऽस्मि मे तस्य किं त्वं शापेन धक्ष्यसि
Do not exhaust yourself with fierce austerities, like the great fires of the end of an age; if I have not been burned by those, how will you burn me with a curse?
संसारावलयो ग्रस्ता निगीर्णा रुद्रकोटयः । भुक्तानि विष्णुवृन्दानि केन शप्ता वयं मुने
The coils of worldly existence have consumed countless Rudras, and multitudes of Vishnus have been devoured; by whom, O sage, have we been cursed?
भोक्तारो हि वयं ब्रह्मन् भोजनं युष्मदादयः । स्वयं नियतिर् एषा हि नावयोर् एतद् ईहितम्
Indeed, O brahmin, we are the enjoyers, and beings like you are the food; this is the course of destiny itself—neither of us is the true agent here.
स्वयम् ऊर्ध्वं प्रयात्य् अग्निस् स्वयं यान्ति पयांस्य् अधः । भोक्तारं भोजनं याति सृष्टिश् चाप्य् अन्तकं स्वयम्
Fire rises upward by its own nature, water flows downward by itself, food goes to the eater, and creation itself proceeds to its own end—all by their own nature.
इदम् इत्थं मुने रूपम् अस्येह परमात्मनः । स्वात्मनि स्वयम् एवात्मा स्वत एव विजृम्भते
O sage, in this way, this is the nature of the Supreme Self here: the Self alone manifests itself within itself, by itself.
नेह कर्ता न भोक्तास्ति दृष्ट्या नष्टकलङ्कया । बहवश् चेह कर्तारो दृष्ट्यानष्टकलङ्कया
Here, when seen with a pure vision, there is neither doer nor enjoyer; but when seen with an impure vision, there appear to be many doers.
कर्तृताकर्तृते ब्रह्मन् केवलं परिकल्पिते । असम्यग्दर्शनेनैव न सम्यग्दर्शनेन वः
O Brahman, the notions of doership and non-doership are merely imagined; they arise only from incorrect perception, not from true understanding.
पुष्पाणि तरुषण्डेषु भूतानि भुवनेषु च । स्वयम् आयान्ति यान्तीह कल्प्यते हेतुता विधेः
Flowers appear on trees and beings come into existence in the world by themselves; here, the idea of causation is only imagined as the work of fate.
अब्बिम्बितस्य चन्द्रस्य चलने कर्त्रकर्तृते । न सत्ये नानृते यद्वत् तद्वत् कालस्य सृष्टिषु
Just as the movement of the reflected moon involves doership and non-doership, which is neither true nor false, so it is with the creations of time.